Where is Bryce Harper going to land? Yankees, aiming for that short RF porch?

Dunno. I really hope Washington lets him sign elsewhere. Nats are solid in the outfield without him, and can use that money where it is needed at other positions. He is a fan favorite however, puts people in the stands, so if the Nats do sign him for stupid money I won't be surprised.

A reason why I collect old keyboards is that I feel partly responsible for doing it, responsible for preserving history and being a custodian for these thingsPlus, old gear has a story. I like that.

The Yankees have tons of hitting. Second baseman Torres hit 24 homers as a 21 year old rookie (in only 123 games), third baseman Andujar hit 27 homers as a 23 year old rookie, Stanton did not have as good a year as expected, and Judge only played in 112 games due to his wrist injury. So I would hope that any off season signings for the Yankees would focus on starting pitchers as opposed to Bryce Harper.

You know, the more I hear John Smoltz broadcast games the more convinced I am that he should be managing somewhere. He has great institutional memory. And he rightfully rejects a lot of this saber metric garbage. Last night he was lamenting the disappearance of the pitch-out, with unassailable logic. He’s also a fan, like myself, of the bunt, which has been vilified by players as a less-than-manly way to get on base. Which is insane. Any line drive hitter is guaranteed to get more line drive base hits if he bunts every so often. The infield will have to play in a few more steps, reducing their reaction time.

The fact there's a Highway To Hell and only a Stairway To Heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers

People only say "It's a free country" when they're doing something shitty-Demetri Martin

Red Sox v. Astros in a way feels like the World Series. These are two historically good teams and both seem to outclass the Dodgers and Brewers.

The Sox/Stros look pretty evenly matched. Boston has better hitters, Houston an epically good pitching staff. Might come down to whether Boston is giving up the game when David Price is on the mound. If he's terrible, as he always has been in the post-season, I don't see Boston overcoming that.

He's a hot dog and a dirty player. That was a BS move at first base last night.

If you still have the game recorded from last night- in slo mo check out the Dodger who comes out onto the field to celebrate after Bellinger's single. He's one step away from crossing the 3rd base line before Machado slides home. Wouldn't that have been something ! I believe if he had crossed over the line and was technically "on the field" , the play would have been nullified.

.... And of course when you're a lifelong fan, you root for a team regardless of the players who are on it.

I totally get that. Heck, I kept on rooting for the Yankees during the 2000 World Series even after Clemens threw half of a fractured bat at Mike Piazza. And I'm not sure I can think of an infraction done by a player during the World Series that was more deserving of punishment than that. I was thinking about the other players who I liked.

It most definitely is! A few rambling thoughts and observations from an old-school baseball fan:

1. I have always cheered for the Dodgers. I've traveled on numerous baseball trips and have sat in the outfield seats at Dodger Stadium. That said, I'm extremely happy that once this season is over, Manny Machado will sign with a different team, preferably one I either hate, or never hear from again.

2. I would also be happy enough to see Milwaukee win because they are small market, have a great manager, and I've been to Miller Park. However, I'm not sure they could beat either AL team.

3. I am a Canadian so all I get are Blue Jays games and Blue Jays talk radio. The team is owned by the largest sports media conglomerate, after all. But I can't cheer for Houston, because of Roberto Osuna. Much as I'd like them to beat the Red Sox. If you have little incentive to cheer for anyone but Toronto, it therefore stands that in the end, it's always ANYbody but Boston.

4. I do not like the swing and miss style of modern baseball. I do not like the wimpy Chase Utley rule (no breaking up a double play at second) and the clear path to home plate wimpy rule. No blocking the plate is ridiculous.

5. I think Commissioner Manfred, in trying to speed up the pace of a game, has screwed it up royally by allowing these "challenges." Angel Hernandez should blow a call, be booed out of the stadium, but eventually the Baseball Gods would even things out.

6. Someone had better start teaching kids in Little League how to beat a shift.

7. Every October I develop an earworm: The Fox Sports Theme. It is ripped off from the bridge of Sleigh Ride: "Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up let's go...."

That was an amazing ending to the RedSox-Astros game last night. There is nothing cooler than seeing a player like Andrew Benintendi, who is not one of the team's big stars, come through with the clutch play for his team.

Not as good as one would expect, which is why baseball is (to me) still an interesting sport.

this year we have two huge market teams in the finals, two storied franchises, an advertisers fantasy come true. I still think the national league representative is outclassed but the Dodgers have more than enough talent to win if enough of their guys catch fire. The Sox, by contrast, should win if enough of their guys just play up to average expectations.

That was a very satisfying win for the Dodgers to close out the NLCS tonight. I'm grateful they have another shot at a World Series title!

I nonetheless felt a tinge of sorrow for the kind people of Wisconsin. They are some of the best sports fans in existence. It was hard to look at their disappointed faces as the Dodgers extended their lead. I wish them the best of luck in the future. I would have happily rooted for the Brewers if they had won tonight.

That was a very satisfying win for the Dodgers to close out the NLCS tonight. I'm grateful they have another shot at a World Series title!

I nonetheless felt a tinge of sorrow for the kind people of Wisconsin. They are some of the best sports fans in existence. It was hard to look at their disappointed faces as the Dodgers extended their lead. I wish them the best of luck in the future. I would have happily rooted for the Brewers if they had won tonight.

Best,

Geoff

I felt the same way about the Brewers fans. And I definitely would have rooted for them over the hated Bosox. I grew up in New Jersey as a diehard Yankees fan so the Red Sox hatred is natural. I came to intensely dislike your Dodgers, Geoff, when they played the Yankees in the late-1970s World Series. Mainly due to Tommy Lasorta, I think. He really got under my skin. But they had some great players on those teams.

Im predicting Boston in 5 games.

The fact there's a Highway To Hell and only a Stairway To Heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers

People only say "It's a free country" when they're doing something shitty-Demetri Martin

I wonder if the teams we "hate" as a baseball fan is based on what was happening the first few years we were serious fans. 1969 was the first year I really followed baseball, and the Orioles ruled the AL East from 1969-1974, the AL from 1969-1971 (I rooted for the Twins in the 1969 & 1970 ALCS, and the A's in the 1971 ALCS). So I'm never gonna like the Orioles. The Reds won the NL West 5 out of the 7 years from 1970-1976, during years when I was hoping other teams would win that division, and they ruined a potential soap opera ending in the 1975 World Series and thrashed the Yanks in the 1976 series. So I'm never gonna like the Reds. I don't dislike the Dodgers or Red Sox, because they were mostly underdog contenders during these years.

I wonder if the teams we "hate" as a baseball fan is based on what was happening the first few years we were serious fans. 1969 was the first year I really followed baseball, and the Orioles ruled the AL East from 1969-1974, the AL from 1969-1971 (I rooted for the Twins in the 1969 & 1970 ALCS, and the A's in the 1971 ALCS). So I'm never gonna like the Orioles. The Reds won the NL West 5 out of the 7 years from 1970-1976, during years when I was hoping other teams would win that division, and they ruined a potential soap opera ending in the 1975 World Series and thrashed the Yanks in the 1976 series. So I'm never gonna like the Reds. I don't dislike the Dodgers or Red Sox, because they were mostly underdog contenders during these years.

I think you nailed it. My dislikes/likes are all based on my childhood. I liked the Yankees and the Oakland Athletics, and pretty much disregarded the entire National League.

The fact there's a Highway To Hell and only a Stairway To Heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers

People only say "It's a free country" when they're doing something shitty-Demetri Martin

Mine are based on my childhood too. The main difference for me was that there was no home team in Phoenix the late '60s when I began to form my allegiances, just the NBA expansion Suns. Otherwise, the closest teams were a state away in California.

The Giants played exhibition games in Phoenix, and they had a minor league franchise there—so they were kind of a home team—but Dodgers games played more often on our TV sets during the regular season, so they were also a bit of a home team. I wound up choosing the Dodgers over the Giants, but I liked the Giants enough that I never developed the habit of hating division rivals.